Exodus 23:25-33 God has promised us a life of victory. That victory must be obtained by our day by day fight to possess our promises. The land of Canaan was a land filled with enemy giants. Our Canaan, which is a land of overcoming faith, is also filled with giants. To take the land, we must fight the good fight of faith. That faith is a step-by-step, here a little, there a little, battle to possess our inheritance. What we fight to obtain, we must guard to keep. Israel’s Inconsistencies kept them from the Promised Land It seems that every time Moses was instructed by God to tell the children of Israel to do something , they rebelled or murmured against it until the entire generation of people fell in the wilderness. (Numbers 14:2) God told Moses, because of their constant murmuring and complaining, and lack of faith, that he would give them what they asked for. And through their death, he would raise up another generation that would possess the land. Numbers 14:26-31 (Read/Amp) This speaks to us today as well. Today we find people much like the children of Israel. They too fail to realize the significance of God’s commandments. If we don’t determine to live by faith and fight for our rights in Christ, then it will only mean that another generation will have to rise up and do God’s pleasure. God promised to do great things for Israel, if they would keep his commandments, and do that which was right in his sight. If God required them to live up to a certain degree of commitment, before the blessings of God would be given to them, then how much more should we need to obey the Word of God and do that which is right in God’s sight, knowing that we have not only a recreated, born again spirit, but that we have the Spirit of God living in us to help us to follow the commandments of the Lord fully. Often times, people look at God’s commandments and only see the restriction of what God forbids. They think the law of God is a demand that prohibits them their own freedom of choice. But God knows what is best, and he understands that the only way we are going to be fulfilled is by living under his care and protection. And that is only worked out through our doing what is pleasing in his sight, in order for us to have his spirit upon us. The Lord gave promises that went with the commandments. In Exodus 23:25 we have what is commonly referred to as a healing promise. God said, “And ye shall serve the Lord your God, and he shall bless thy bread, and thy water; and I will take sickness away from the midst of thee.” God said there was a condition upon this promise. Often we find people who want the blessing, but not the blesser. They want the healing, but not the healer. They want the promise, but not the giver of the promise. The greatest command-ment of all was to love the Lord God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength. If we will fall in love with God, just for who He is, then the blessings of God will fall on us! Exodus 23 describes the overwhelming odds God intended to give Israel over their enemies. God promised Israel if they would serve Him not only would He take care of them physically as a nation, but He would protect their young and cause them to live out their days on the earth. This promise was God’s commitment to Israel, if they would follow him fully. Then God promises to send his fear before Israel and destroy all the people to whom they would come up against. The fear of God would cause their enemies to turn their backs to Israel. What a tremendous promise! How could anyone dare turn such a promise like that down? Yet Israel served their own flesh instead of God, and left God’s promise for the next generation to enjoy. What Israel failed to realize was, even though they faced great and terrible enemies, their enemies were no match for Israel’s God. If Israel would have viewed their enemies through God’s eyes instead of their own eyes, they would have seen the giants as grasshoppers, instead of themselves as grasshoppers in the eyes of the enemies. Proverbs 29:25 says “The fear of man bringeth a snare”. With all God had promised Israel, they still kept to their murmuring and complaining because the present conditions were unpleasant. God said He would drive out the inhabitants of Canaan a little bit at a time, until Israel was able to increase as a nation and inherit the entire land. This has great significance to us today because so often we think that we should move right into our inheritance immediately, instead of having to take it a little at a time, and so we become discouraged and fainthearted. What was God’s reasoning behind a slow step-by-step method of extinguishing their enemies. I think there is several important reasons One, because God did not want them to overcome more than they could possess. So often we think we can handle more than we can. But God knows what we can handle, and so He only blesses us with what we can afford to be blessed with, unless the subtle enemies of our carnal nature overcome us and drive us from the land. For example God couldn’t give a pastor who was only able to pastor 200 people a church of 4,000. It would destroy him. In the same way, God is not going to bring you into more than you are able to maintain. By obtaining a little at a time, we grow in faith as we possess more of our promises. Another reason was because God wanted them to increase as they overcame. God wants us to increase as we go, so that what we take we can keep. We don’t want to lose the ground that we’ve gained! And neither did God. So He led them into the land step by step. And that is the way He is going to lead us, step by step. Isaiah 28:9-10 says, “Whom shall he teach knowledge? and whom shall he make to understand doctrine? Them that are weaned from the milk and drawn from the breasts. ... See STEP BY STEP- Page 15 2 GLAD TIDINGS APRIL 2026 Non-denominational Christian Newspaper Sharing the Gospel of Jesus the Christ MAIL P. O. BOX 1116 - DOUGLAS - GA 31534 E- MAIL Editor@GladTidings.news OFFICE PHONE (912) 384- 6896 ADMINISTRATION EDITOR AND PUBLISHER.........Quinnelle McRae VOLUNTEERS CARTOONS/JoyfulToons...................Mike Waters EDITORIAL WRITERS .......... Gary Toole, Peggy Clark, Sara Goldstein, Mark Hankins PROOF READER.. .............................Peggy Clark PHOTOGRAPHY.... ................. Quinnelle McRae ADVERTISING.............................Quinnelle McRae SUBMISSIONS We invite and welcome articles, testimonies, poems, announcements, church news, church histories, recipes or any other inspirational writings. Submissions will not be accepted that exceed 350 words. Publisher assumes no liability for unsolicited art, photographs, manuscripts or other materials. The publisher reserves the right to edit or reject all material which goes against Glad Tidings policy. Glad Tidings will not engage in any controversy and does not endorse any religious expression, viewpoint, opinions or doctrines. The printing of Glad Tidings Newspaper is financed solely through advertisements and contributions. You may contact our office for Ad prices. DATES Glad Tidings is published bi-monthly Publication is the 3rd Tuesday of 1st month Advertising & Editorials due 3 weeks before publication .DISTRIBUTION The print edition of Glad Tidings is distributed Free of Charge in Coffee, Atkinson, Jeff Davis, Telfair, Wheeler, Ben Hill, Irwin, Cook, Bacon, Ware, and Tift counties. All churches are welcome to as many copies as they would like to pass out to their congregation. Call the office telephone number for more information. The digital edition is free and available on-line at www.GladTidings.news GLAD TIDINGS - ALL Rights Reserved. Reproduction in whole or part is prohibited. © Our Mission at Glad Tidings is to reach as many as possible with the good news of JESUS CHRIST u Please thank our advertisers and volunteers for making possible the sharing of Glad Tidings with you! APRIL 2026 Sow your Seed into the Good Ground of Glad Tidings Glad Tidings A Step By Step Battle REV. QUINNELLE MCRAE
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MTk2NjczNQ==